It’s Champions League day for Paris and Lille. But on Monday, the players will not have to warm up, they will only have to cross their fingers to hope that fate reserves them a favorable opponent. PSG and Losc will indeed know from noon the posters of the round of 16 of the competition, during the draw in Nyon in Switzerland. The matches are scheduled for February (15, 16, 22 or 23 for the first leg) and March (8, 9, 15 or 16 for the return leg).
The Parisians, despite their ambition to win the competition, are exposed to a complicated next round due to their mixed performances during the group stage. They indeed finished in second place behind Manchester City. One thing is certain: they will not face either the English or Lille at this stage of the tournament.
A Messi-Ronaldo duel?
But PSG are also certain to fall on a cador, the most formidable being Liverpool and Bayern Munich, who impressed this fall by winning their six European games. Real Madrid, too, are on the list of opponents to be avoided. Leader of the Spanish Championship, the team of Karim Benzema and Vicinius have not lost a match in the past two months.
However, this period was more complicated for Manchester United, but the talented “Red Devils” began their transformation under the leadership of their new coach, Ralf Rangnick. If Paris faces the Mancuniens, the superstar Lionel Messi will find Cristiano Ronaldo, who joined the English club in August, for a new chapter in their legendary rivalry.
Finally, Ajax Amsterdam and Juventus Turin are perhaps more affordable… but that’s forgetting that the Dutch have won all their group matches, and that PSG have never beaten the Italians in their history!
First but not well off
Paradoxically, although they finished at the top of their group, the Dogues de Lille should come across a club with a bigger pedigree than theirs. Among the lot of potential opponents of Losc: the defending champion (Chelsea), the champion of Spain (Atlético Madrid), the champion of Italy (Inter Milan), the champion of Portugal (Sporting Portugal) and the last winner of the Europa League (Villarreal). Benfica Lisbon, who managed the tour de force to finish ahead of FC Barcelona, completes this list. Absent from the final phase of the C1 since 2007, Lille will therefore have to achieve a new feat if he wants to extend his dream.
This draw will also be followed by that of the Europa League play-offs at 1 p.m., which does not concern Lyon or Monaco, already qualified for the round of 16. As for the Olympique de Marseille, engaged in the C4 play-offs, the new Europa League Conference, he will know his opponent at 2 p.m.